Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbulakshmi is a name that is synonymous with the world of Carnatic music. This flawless singer, whose voice almost had a divine power, is the first singer to be presented with India’s highest civil honour, the Bharat Ratna. When she was honoured with the Ramon Magsaysay award, which is considered as Asia’s Nobel Prize, she became the first Indian musician to do so. Subbulakshmi, fondly addressed as M.S by her fans, was a true pioneer of anything that has to do with women empowerment. She led by example and showed the way to contemporary women of her era.
Subbulakshmi began her training under her mother Shanmu kavadiver Ammal. She then went on to learn the nuances of Carnatic music under Semmangudi Srinivasa Iyer. While learning Carnatic music, she also learnt and mastered Hindustani music under the famous vocalist Pandit Narayanrao Vyas. M.S was a quick learner and thus finished her education at a young age.
The great talent that M.S possessed brought a galaxy of fans. Her fan list included the likes of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Sarojini Naidu, Lata Mangeshkar, Ustad Bade Ghulam Ali Khan and Kishori Amonkar. Mahatma Gandhi once commented that he would rather hear Subbulakshmi utter the lyrics of the songs rather than hear someone else sing it. While Jawaharlal Nehru called her the ‘Queen of Music’, Bade Ghulam Ali defined her as the ‘Goddess of perfect note’. In the year 1998, M. S. Subbulakshmi became the first musician to be honored with India’s highest civilian award.
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